When to enrol clients yourself vs. send them a booking link
One of the most common questions from new Zooza users is: "Why can't I just add clients to a class myself? Why do I have to send them a link?"
The short answer: you can enrol clients manually. But Zooza is designed around a different model — one where you set the rules and clients manage themselves. Understanding when each approach is right will save you a lot of admin time.
The core difference
| You enrol the client | Client self-registers | |
|---|---|---|
| Who does the work | You | The client |
| Client receives | Notification of their booking | Full registration journey: form, confirmation, payment |
| Payment collected | You add it manually afterwards | Collected automatically on booking |
| Consent and data | You type in their details | Client enters their own details and accepts terms |
| Best for | Bulk transfers, exceptions, correcting mistakes | All normal new registrations |
When to use the booking link (most of the time)
Send clients your online booking link for:
- New registrations — any first-time client joining a class
- Trials — clients must book trials themselves (admin cannot create trial bookings manually)
- Term renewals — if using auto-enrolment, clients receive a link to confirm their spot
- Re-enrolments — returning clients signing up for a new term
The booking link handles everything: form submission, payment collection, confirmation email, and consent. You don't need to do anything until the booking appears in your list.
How to find your booking link: Go to the Programme → click the booking link icon or copy the URL shown on the class tile. See Share your booking link for details.
When to enrol a client manually
Some situations genuinely require admin action:
Bulk term transfers (copy bookings) When starting a new term, you can copy all existing bookings from the old class to the new one in one step. This is the recommended approach for term rollovers — not sending everyone a link. See Run a term reset.
Corrections and exceptions
- A client paid offline (bank transfer, cash) and you need to create their booking immediately
- A client's booking was cancelled by mistake and needs to be reinstated
- You're onboarding a group of clients simultaneously from a spreadsheet (use Client import)
Back-office entries
- Creating a booking for a client who has no internet access or cannot complete the form themselves
- Adding a staff member, instructor, or internal test booking
What manual enrolment doesn't do: When you create a booking manually, payment is not collected automatically. You'll need to record any payment separately on the booking. The client also won't go through the booking form — so any custom questions you've added won't be answered.
What happens if you do everything manually
Some operators start by manually creating every booking — especially those migrating from systems where admin controlled everything. This works, but it creates more work, not less:
- You have to manually record every payment
- You have to manually send confirmation emails
- You have to handle every re-registration at term end
- Clients don't learn to use the portal themselves — so they contact you for everything
Zooza is designed to reduce this. The goal is: clients self-register, payments run automatically, you step in only for exceptions.
The one thing you cannot do manually: create a trial
Trial bookings must be submitted by the client via the booking form. You cannot create a trial on behalf of a client.
If a client wants to try a class but can't use the form:
- Send them the booking link directly.
- If they still can't book, create a regular booking (not a trial) and convert it to trial status afterwards — see Convert an existing booking to trial.
Summary: the decision
New client wants to join?
└── Is it a trial? → Send booking link (required)
└── Is it a normal registration?
└── Will they book themselves? → Send booking link (preferred)
└── Exception / bulk / no internet? → Create manually, add payment separately